Documentary on Monarch showing in Monmouth

Fine art photographers and authors Cindy and Kirby Pringle will show their new documentary, "Plight of the Monarch," at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 2, at Buchanan Center for the Arts,

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Aledo Times Record - Aledo, IL

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Posted Oct. 11, 2012 at 9:36 AM
Updated Oct 11, 2012 at 9:38 AM

Posted Oct. 11, 2012 at 9:36 AM
Updated Oct 11, 2012 at 9:38 AM

Monmouth

Fine art photographers and authors Cindy and Kirby Pringle will show their new documentary, "Plight of the Monarch," at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 2, at Buchanan Center for the Arts,

64 Public Square, Monmouth. The event is free and open to the public.

The multimedia event at the Buchanan Center for the Arts will feature two 20-minute films -- a slide show, with narration and original music of the new book by the Pringles, "The Butterfly That Would Not Fly." The 32-page hardcover book tells the story of two "dog people" who find a monarch butterfly that is afraid of heights. The canine couple, Earl and Pearl Barker, try to help the butterfly overcome its fear so that it can fly to Mexico and join millions of other overwintering monarchs.

The documentary on monarch butterflies, "The Plight of the Monarch," follows. The film, with original music by Will DeSelms of Roseville, shows how the lifecycle of the monarch butterfly is intricately tied to milkweed -- the only plant on which the monarch lays its eggs and the only plant the caterpillar eats. As the number of milkweed plants in the Midwest have declined over the last decade, so has the population of the monarch butterfly. Monarch numbers were down considerably over their long-term average in 2012 and 2011.

The Pringles have extraordinary and unusual footage of the monarch butterfly, from the egg-laying process, to the tiny caterpillar hatching from the egg, to the caterpillar forming its chrysalis, to the adult butterfly emerging from the chrysalis.

"Aside from the educational aspects of the documentary, people will be moved by the incredible images and the gorgeous score by Will DeSelms. We're very proud of the film. It's taken us many months and a lot of hard work, but it's been worth it," Kirby Pringle says. "The feedback we've received from audiences has been fantastic."